Results tagged “firstladylaurabush”

President George Bush gave his final State of the Union address, sounding positive about his leadership but also noting that there's still more to do: "From expanding opportunity to protecting our country, we have made good progress. Yet we have unfinished business before us, and the American people expect us to get it done." (You can read the entire text here.)

• Today on the Gothamist Newsmap: a scaffolding collapse on 127th St. and Morningside Ave. in Manhattan, a stabbing at East 96th St. and Rutland Ave. in Brooklyn, and a shooting on Guy R. Blvd. in Queens.
• That huge fire visible across the Hudson last night was a blaze that consumed a sailboat docked in Weehawken, NJ.
• A cyclist was hit by several different cars while on the Manhattan Bridge this week.
• Rev. Al Sharpton marched in DC this week to call for widespread racial justice.
• Muddy paths and trails through the woods may not be NYC's strong suit, but NYU has a nationally ranked cross-country track team.
• The B Train only scored a "C-" in the MTA's most recent survey of riders.
• First Lady Laura Bush visited the city to honor an elementary school teacher.
• Almost 15,000 families stand to lose their homes in the ongoing credit-crunch sub-prime mortgage meltdown.

Fette Sau, by skittlbrau at flickr

First Lady Laura Bush visited a school on the Lower East Side with Mayor Bloomberg and other city officials yesterday. The first lady, a former school librarian, announced a $1.3 million grant from the Laura Bush Foundation for school libraries across the country to update their book collections. Twenty-eight schools in the city will get grants up to $5,000, including the the Island School on East Houston. The Post reports that the Island School's head librarian Lewis Lhana, who conducts puppets shows, had one of the puppets "gentle dragon Qualia" tell Mayor Bloomberg he smelled "like a rocket ship."

Note to all politicians: If you need a shot of adrenalin at one of your events, get subway superhero Wesley Autrey on board. Because when President Bush cited Autrey's amazing rescue of another subway rider who had fallen into the tracks, we feel that Autrey brought down the house. Bush said:

Three weeks ago, Wesley Autrey was waiting at a Harlem subway station with his two little girls, when he saw a man fall into the path of a train. With seconds to act, Wesley jumped onto the tracks, pulled the man into the space between the rails, and held him as the train passed right above their heads. He insists he's not a hero. He says: "We got guys and girls overseas dying for us to have our freedoms. We have got to show each other some love." There is something wonderful about a country that produces a brave and humble man like Wesley Autrey.

Autrey waved the crowds, seemed to mouth "You the man" to the President, and shook the hands of First Lady Laura Bush and Vice President Dick Cheney's wife Lynne. (Autrey's youngest daughter seemed to be sleeping.)

Yesterday, President Bush arrived in New York City for September 11 anniversary rites. He and First Lady Laura Bush went to Ground Zero to lay memorial wreaths at the reflecting pools in the World Trade Center's footprints. They also visited a firehouse near Ground Zero and attended a memorial service at St. Paul's Chapel. Mayor Bloomberg, Governor Pataki, and former Mayor Giuliani, who all accompanied the Bushes to Ground Zero, were also at the memorial, as were Senators Schumer and Clinton. The Bushes will be visiting a firehouse on Pitt Street this morning in the city and will later travel to Shanksville, Pennsylvania where United Flight 93 crashed. Then, at 9PM, the President will be in the White Houes and will address the country at 9PM.

Though the Westminster Kennel Club Dog Show is over, Gothamist has been enjoying city rag's photographs from the final night. The win of the "liver-colored" German pointer Ch Kan-Point's VJK Autumn Roses (aka Carlee) was shocking to us, because "liver-colored" doesn't really sound so good, unless it's foie gras. But the Westminster Kennel Club Dog Show is the only awards show where they get to say, "This bitch really deserved to win"...well, the only awards show until Chris Rock hosts the Oscars in a week and a half. Anyway, Gothamist found this NY Times piece almost helpful on why purebred dogs have such crazy names; we say almost because the names are still insane.

- Bad acting Arnold

First Lady Laura Bush visited France to formally usher the U.S. back into UNESCO; the U.S. left during the Reagan era, when we claimed that UNESCO was distributing anti-U.S. propaganda. French President Jacques Chirac took the opportunity to make nice with the First Lady, by giving her extravagant kisses on her hand. Mrs. Bush told reporters, "I think that was just French hospitality," but Gothamist can tell an annoyed/frightened smile from a mile. All we can say is "Hands off our First Lady!" Where was the Secret Service?